TAKING CENTER STAGE – DAAP Fashion Show 2010

University of Cincinnati College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP) - has become a creative force with which to be reckoned, receiving global acclaim.
http://www.daap.uc.edu/about/welcome

Attending the 2010 DAAP Fashion Show preview night elevated my senses to an ethereal realm – suspending disbelief of the unimaginable couture. The techno beat, electric haute lighting, and glitz & glam all around were pivotal in building anticipation. Expectations were exceeded off the charts!

Models featured handcrafted, one-of-a-kind ensembles by DAAP Seniors that were ideated from sketch to pattern creation, and then brought to life with needle and thread. Chic evening wear, lingerie, sports wear, and musical instruments sewn into future-esque garments were only a handful of themes that commanded attention on the catwalk.


Over-the-top styles made believers out of audience members that, for a mere 2 hours, Cincinnati was the new Paris, Milan, and New York City of fashion capitals. The Midwest Project Runway just trumped NYC!

DAAP boasts the success of grad Althea Harper, a finalist on Project Runway Season 6 and invited her back to grace the audience with her story to stardom. Making her mark in the fashion scene by using fluid fabrics to silhouettes the female form as strong and beautiful.
http://blog.altheaharper.com/


Walking out of the auditorium, it was as though a fountain of ideas were pouring through the right side of my brain. Immediately, I began my own fashion sketches, followed by a splash of watercolor to give a sense of color-way within my imagined Collections. Loving the idea of a conversation print & pattern that’s heroed within the lead piece and how this signature element influences the complimentary garments through the SCAMPERED Method – it’s this jazzed pulse I imagine that gives fashion designers a natural high.



As the night concluded, the crowd’s standing ovation was merely a hint of the excitement radiating virally from that moment on.
Cincinnati Bucket List – must include visiting UC’s campus to attend the renowned DAAP Fashion Show next Spring.

The Painted Memory
www.thepaintedmemory.com